Psych
by iceskater7
Summary: Itex comes up with a new injection. An injection which causes their abilities to reveal themselves sooner, but has some serious side effects that could very well be lethal, and may ruin Max and Fang's relationship. As with the rest of the flock's lives.


**Hey, hey! Just thought I should warn you that there is a good chance I won't update in a while. Just a head's up. Its not for any specific reason, I'm just a busy person. I'll try my hardest, though! This is my fourth FanFic; my third MR one. So just be honest and review! Harsh critiques are welcome, just don't get insulting! For what's a story without those who read it? **

**Disclaimer––James Patterson is the owner of all Maximum Ride characters. **

**Claimer––Umm, the plot and every other random person whom is not mentioned in the books are mine. **

**Chapter 1**

_"This chemical has been adapted to cause different reactions depending on the hybrid---"_

_"Is it safe?" Gregory McMahan questioned the White Coat who was explaining the new injection. "Or at least stable?"_

_"Of course its not one hundred percent safe. As I said before, it depends on the hybrid. We have had one death so far throughout our trials. We tested ten different hybrids among the same species." The White Coat went on to explaining some statistics. _

_"What kind of reactions are we talking about?" Dr. McMahan interrupted once more. _

_The White Coat sighed. "Yes, Dr. McMahan, I was just about to get to that. They will most likely be drastic personality changes and such."_

_"And what would be the point of such an irrational injection? I do not see how it would matter if we change their personalities." Dr. McMahan scoffed. A few other doctors and experimentalists in the back of the room nodded and mumbled an agreement. _

_"We will be able to determine the rest of their abilities. This hormonal injection will speed up the process of allowing their abilities to develop. We will be able to test more thoroughly on them. The extreme personality disorders which come along are only a side effect. And, depending on which problems the chemicals induce, we may very well be able to determine their remaining powers before they even show up."_

_At this, some of the doctors whom had shown a little hesitation in the further trial of the experiment started re-contemplating, now murmuring things along the lines of, "That sounds like an adequate trial. Perhaps we shall give it a chance to further."_

_"Won't the over-processing of the abilities lead to an early death? One before their original marker." Dr. McMahan still wasn't thoroughly convinced. _

_"It is a conceivable problem, Doctor, but I had some hybrid whom we injected the chemicals in about two years earlier, just die today, on his original marker. Though, we may not know the full extent of the consequences of the chemicals quite yet, it is definitely a fair chance that it can speed up their clock. But as I stated earlier, it depends on the hybrid."_

_A man behind Dr. McMahan leaned over to the woman beside him, "Too bad good old Jeb isn't here to see _this._"_

**Two Weeks Earlier**

**Max Pov. **

I heaped a large scoop of mashed potatoes onto my plate. Ella gave me an incredulous look and shook her head. "I really do not understand how you eat that much."

"What?" I asked in innocence. "Look, Fang has twice as much as me!"

Fang looked down at his plate, and then over to mine. "Food is good."

"You betcha." Iggy concurred.

Dr. Martinez smiled at us. It was dinnertime, and, for once, all of the flock was here, and my parents and Ella. My entire family! Together! In one household! It was almost implausible, after all we've been through.

Jeb was reading a newspaper. I was still a little reluctant to allow him into my heart, but then again, I was like that with everyone.

"Oh my God! Pork chops!' Nudge exclaimed exuberantly.

Fang chuckled and turned to me. "I take it she is officially over her vegetarian phase."

I grinned back at him. Fang was smiling and laughing. That, in itself, was almost inconceivable. But my flock was happy; I was happy. Nothing could have gotten better.

I set my plate down next to Ella's and look around. "Has anyone seen Angel and Gazzy?"

"I think they went outside." Jeb replied.

"Don't worry, Max, we're fine!" Angel comforted as she and her brother bounced in through the door. But suddenly she got a look of slight remorse on her face that only an adorable six-year-old girl could master. "I left Celeste outside! Will you come with me to find her?" She turned her big blue eyes to me. How could I say no to that?

"We'll be right back," I informed Dr. Martinez.

"Okay. Don't be too long, though. Dinner will get cold." She shuffled through a cabinet looking for extra plates.

Angel and I walked outside. "Where do you think you left it?"

"Her." She corrected. "Not it."

"Right," I apologized. "Of course. Where do you---"

At that exact moment, a cloud of smoke erupted over the house. I felt frozen on the spot. What had happened? The blast from an explosion sent Angel and me tumbling to the ground, and gasping for air, after it had been knocked out of our lungs.

It was a small explosion, but the house was starting to crumble; no!

"Stay here!" I ordered Angel, and I run toward the rubble. No, no, no. This couldn't be happening.

I started calling out names, trying to locate at least one person.

Nudge stumbled out, pulling Iggy along behind her by hand, both of whom were coughing uncontrollably and covered in soot. "Get outside!" I ordered them!

I called out once more. I was still missing Fang, Gazzy, Ella, Dr. Martinez, and Jeb.

"Max! A voice called from behind. Fang was standing right behind me. I let a small sigh of relief escape.

But in a split second, a beam fell down in front of me. "Max, we need to get out of here!" Fang coughed.

"Gazzy, and Ella, and---"

"We need to get out. Its about to cave."

"But . . ." the look on Fang's face told me that we really did need to get out of here. ". . . Gazzy . . ."

The refrigerator landed only inches away from me, along with half of the ceiling.

"Max . . ." The look on Fang's face was solemn, but I tried to ignore it.

"I have to find them!" I exclaimed, perhaps a little too hopefully. I started digging through what I think was once a table. Fang suddenly tackled me, shoving me out of the way of a falling chunk of wood.

He quickly pulled me up and forced me out of the house by my hand. "Fang, wait!"

He ignored my plea, though I could see it was killing him inside. When we reach the semi-fresh air outside, I see that Jeb had made it out. Still no Gazzy, Ella, or Dr. Martinez.

"Let go!" I sobbed. He didn't let go.

Everyone else just had a look of utter shock and despair on their faces.

"I . . . need . . . to get . . . back . . . inside." I was choking up with tears.

Fang still didn't let go. He just folded his arms around me comfortingly and I sobbed into his shoulder.

Moments later, some sort of newly enhanced Flyboys descended. Fang swore lightly under his breath, but I wasn't thinking about anything except for the safety of the rest of my family.

Long story short, we wound up in their captivity. They crammed us into one large cage in the back of some sort of large trailer used for hauling equipment. And I was mad.

"Calm down, bird freak. We'll be there in five hours, give or take." A man sitting on a bench just outside of our cage. _Ha. He's mocking me. Ha ha. _

I easily stuck my hand through the bars of the cage and grabbed his shirt collar. "Really? Would you care to join us in here? I'm sure there's some way we can fit that large head of yours through these bars, though, we may have to crunch it in a bit."

Five other men with large weapons stepped up, preparing to pry me off their fellow guard. "Fine, fine. I'll let him go." I snarled. I sat down in a corner of the cage and rested my head in my right hand. Was this really happening? Gazzy, Ella, and Dr. Martinez were surely dead by now, if they were still alive, to begin with.

Fang sat down next to me wrapped his left arm around me. "I'm sure they're okay, Max."

"Fang, surely you would know that there is hardly any hope for them, crushed under the rubble of what used to be a house." Everything sounded so melancholy. Every _was_ melancholy.

"I know, I just hate seeing you like this." He caressed.

Jeb was watching us uneasily out of the corner of his eye. On the other side of the cage, Angel started crying. She hobbled over to Fang and me, and collapsed on my lap. I stroked her hair.

"Gah-G-Gazzy's dead!" She cried.

"Shhh, you don't know that." I held her close.

"B-both you and Fang are th-thinking it, though!" She argued.

I looked up and Fang's eyes connected with my own, as if to say _What now? _Fang rubbed his thumb on my arm, in a means of consolation.

"Okay, Fang. How about you maybe move about three feet from my daughter?" Jeb suggested forcefully, and then added, "and remove your arm from her shoulder."

I could feel my face turning bright red. Nudge gave a slight laugh, but immediately afterwards, the remains of her smile vanished into thin air, as if it was never there.

I stared at Fang, silently begging him not to listen to Jeb. A frown rippled across his face, unsure of what to do. By Jeb's death glare, he settled on keeping his arm to his self, and inched to his left a little more.

I glared at Jeb intently, and he smiled in accomplishment, pretending that nothing had happened. The rest of the ride is quite uneventful. Lots of sobbing and angry glowering took place.

Eventually, we arrive at some Itex Plantation. Well, I'm guessing that its an Itex building, at least. They wheeled our big cage (with a large sheet over it) into an elevator (it sounded like an elevator, at least) and then finally into a room where the sheet is revealed.

"Jeb Batchelder!" A White Coat announced in surprise. "I definitely did not count on seeing you here! Or in a cage."

Jeb frowned at the woman. "Just let me out, Margaret."

"Its Dr. Gilroy, to you, Jeb." She corrected.

"Open. The. Cage." Jeb growled. Wow. Jeb was sure in an aggressive move.

"One moment, Jeb. Hello, Maximum." She acknowledged my presence.

"I don't know you. Therefore, I will not converse with you and your inflated egotistical head."

She shook her head and pulled out her cell phone, mutter something about _Jeb, Maximum Ride, Flock, and Injection_.

When she hung up the phone she turned back to us. "Sorry, Jeb. I have been given strict orders to keep you in there for a while. I will be back shortly." With that, we were left alone in a large white room.

The reality just sank in. We were back to testing. To torture. And Gazzy was dead. I could practically feel my eyes widen, but I refused to let more tears fall. I had to be strong. For the rest of the flock.

**- Review! I hope you liked it! ~Kristen**


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